Cognitive Distortions

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ELEPHANT/RIDER MODEL
- 1 Elephant/Rider Model
- 2 The Elephant…
  - 2.1 Training the Elephant
  - 2.2 Retraining the Elephant
  - 2.3 Feeding the Elephant
- 3 The Rider…
  - 3.1 When the Rider Leads!
  - 3.2 Rider Modes
    - 3.2.1 Observing Self
    - 3.2.2 Processor Self
    - 3.2.3 The Inner Lawyer
- 4 Psychological Skills…
  - 4.1 #1 Psychological Skill
    - 4.1.1 Why Sitting Quietly
    - 4.1.2 Why SQ Works
    - 4.1.3 Ways to Engage SQ
  - 4.2 Self-Awareness
    - 4.2.1 The Observing Self
    - 4.2.2 Defusion
  - 4.3 Self-Regulation
    - 4.3.1 Step Back
    - 4.3.2 Acceptance
    - 4.3.5 Self-Talk
    - 4.3.7 Critical Thinking Skills
  - 4.4 CBT in the ERM
    - 4.4.1 Using CBT
  - 4.5 Workability
  - 4.6 Effective Criticism
  - 4.7 Appeal to the Elephant
- 5 Awakening…
  - 5.1 Conditioning
  - 5.2 Ignorance
    - 5.2.1 More on Ignorance
  - 5.3 Delusion
    - 5.3.1 The Elephant Duped
    - 5.3.2 A Dichotomy Disorder…
    - 5.3.3 The Wrath…
    - 5.3.4 Types of Delusion
SITTING QUIETLY
- Sitting Quietly
- 1 Self-Care…
  - 1.1 On Being…
  - 1.2 On Well-Being…
  - 1.3 On the Big Rocks…
  - 1.4 On Integrity
  - 1.5 Your North Star
- 2 Relaxation…
  - 2.1 Abdominal Breathing
  - 2.2 Box Breathing
  - 2.3 Relaxation Response
  - 2.4 A Calming Intervention
  - 2.5 Muscle Relaxation
- 3 The Observing Self…
  - 3.1 Using CBT
- 4 Defusion…
  - 4.1 …With Thoughts
  - 4.2 Getting Rid Of…
  - 4.3 …With Feelings
  - 4.4 …With Difficult Feelings
  - 4.5 …When Distressed
- 5 Acceptance
  - 5.1 Acceptance 101
LIFE PRACTICES
- Life Practices…
- 1 Self-Care
- 2 Well Being
- 3 Sitting Quietly
- 4 Personal Growth
  - 4.1 Awakening
  - 4.2 The Examined Life
  - 4.3 Goal Setting
- 5 The Habit of Discovery
- 6 Altruism (“Their-Care”)
COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY
- Change the World…
  - – The Captain
  - – The Subway
- Introduction to CBT
- Using CBT
- CBT Basic Concepts…
  - – Thoughts vs Feelings
  - – Core Beliefs & Conditioning
  - – Why We Learn
  - – Psychological Skills
- Defense Mechanisms
- Common Distortions
- Automatic Thoughts (ATs)
  - – Questioning ATs
  - – Examples of ATs
- Disputation Strategies
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EMOTIONAL REASONING

You let your feelings guide your interpretation of reality.

Examples: “I feel depressed, which proves my marriage is not working out.” Or “I’m feeling anxious again, which just shows I won’t be able to handle it…”

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MAGNIFICATION

- a.k.a. “catastrophizing" -

You believe that what will happen is so awful and unbearable that you won’t be able to stand it.

Examples: “It would be terrible if I failed.” Or, “What if that happened to me?”

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OVERGENERALIZING

You see a single negative event as a never-ending pattern of defeat.

Examples: “I got a ‘D’; god, I’m a lousy student.” Or, “Why does this always happen to me?”

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ALL-or-NOTHING THINKING

- a.k.a. DICHOTOMOUS THINKING -

You see things in black-or-white terms.

Examples: “I get rejected by everyone.” or “It was a complete waste of time.”

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MIND READING

You assume that you know what people think without having sufficient evidence of their thoughts.

Examples: “He thinks I’m a loser.” Or, “He dissed me ‘cause I didn’t agree with him.”

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LABELING

This is a more extreme form of overgeneralization. Instead of describing your error, you attach a negative label to yourself.

Examples: “I’m a loser.” When someone else’s behavior rubs you the wrong way, you attach a negative label to him” “He’s a damn sexist.”

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NEGATIVE FILTERING

You focus almost exclusively on the negatives and seldom notice the positives.

Examples: “Look at all of the people who don’t like me.” Or, “I always get the short end of it.”

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DISCOUNTING POSITIVES

You claim that the positive things you or others do are trivial.

Examples: “That’s what wives are supposed to do – it doesn’t count when she’s nice to me,” or “Those successes were too easy, so they don’t really matter.”

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BLAMING

You focus on the other person as the source of your negative feelings, and you refuse to take responsibility for changing yourself.

Examples: “She’s to blame for the lousy way I feel now.” Or “My parents were really screwed up, and they’re the ones who caused all my problems.”

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FORTUNE-TELLING

You predict the future negatively: things will get worse, or there is danger ahead.

Examples: “I just know I’m going to fail that exam.” Or “Be the same old story, and I won’t get that job.”

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WHAT-IF

You keep asking a series of questions about “what if” something happens, and you fail to be satisfied with any of the answers.

Examples: “Yeah, but what if I get anxious?” “What if I panic?” “What if I can’t catch my breath?” “What if they laugh?”

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INABILITY-to-DISCONFIRM

You reject any evidence or arguments that might contradict your negative thoughts. E.g, when you have the thought I’m unlovable, you reject as irrelevant any evidence that people like you. Consequently, your thought cannot be refuted.

More examples: “That’s not the real issue.” “There are deeper problems.” “There are other factors.”

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SHOULD STATEMENTS

You try to motivate yourself with should and shouldn’t, as if you had to be whipped and punished before you could be expected to do anything.

“Musts” and “oughts” are also offenders. The emotional consequences are guilt. “I should exercise more.” “I shouldn’t be such a slob.” “I ought to be smarter/kinder/more caring/more sensitive/more…”

When you direct “should” statements toward others, you feel anger, frustration, and resentment.

Examples: “He should be more attentive.” “She ought to know better.” “They should be less judgmental.”

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